Note: Hey guys! Look, I stole Erik, whee:Erik looks around: "where the heck am I?" Alright guys, this chapter kind of sucks, and I may be redoing this chapter, if ya like it and don't want me to change it, let me know. Now I must go before someone comes looking for Erik...they can't take him away from me! He's mine, my own, my precious.
Chapter 9
Ana looked at the beautiful young woman in front of her. "You must be the same Christine that Meg talks constantly about. I'm Ana Knoll, one of the dancers there." She saw Christine look up at her and smile as she handed Ana one of the shirts that was wrapped in paper.
"Yes, I am and it's a pleasure to meet you Ana. You're friends with Meg? How is she?" The two stood up and Ana brushed herself off.
"She is well although I believe that she misses you. When ever she talks about you, she gets somewhat misty eyed. You should come see the next show and surprise Meg. I'm sure she would be quite happy to see you." Ana said shyly.
"Oh! Well, it has been a long time sine I have seen her or Madame Giry. I haven't been back there since that one night. But, maybe I can convince Raoul and bring our son to there as well. I know we are getting ready for a tour around Switzerland and England, so maybe before we leave we could stop in. Yes, I think I will talk to Raoul and I am sure that he is gone." Christine said quietly. Then she looked at Ana, "Oh dear, I am sorry. I must be blabbering again and you must be wanting to get your husbands clothing back to him. And I really must be getting Raoul a new dress shirt. He would get it himself, but he's currently watching our son. I will hopefully be seeing you around Ana. Tell Meg I say hello." With that said, Ana and Christine parting ways. Ana began to laugh when she was a good deal away from the men's store.
Erik, her husband! That was as laughable as a jester in a king's court. She would rather be married to Alex ten times over than ever love a man that was as demanding and...evil as Erik was. She reached the Opera House and quickly entered. She saw the managers conversing in low tones. They glanced up when they saw Ana enter through the Grand Foyer.
"Ah! Mademoiselle Knoll, we were just talking about you. Madame Giry has just spoken to us and said that you can sing. We were wondering if you would like to be an understudy for one of the lesser known singers. If something should happen to one of them, then you would fill their place. What do you say?" Firmin asked her.
Ana must have had a puzzling look on her face. Madame Giry knew she sang? How did she hear her? Obviously she heard her that morning when she sat on stage.
"But, Monsieurs, do you not want to hear me sing? I mean, you do not know how good I am." she said, somewhat dumbfounded.
Andre shook his head, "No, Madame Giry promised us you were quite good. We must take her word, for she has never been wrong. Now, at tomorrow's dress rehearsal, we shall introduce you to Madame Sarah LeBrana. That is all, Mam'selle." they dismissed her with a wave of their hands. Ana walked off speechless. She reached her room and opened her door. When she entered her room, she saw Erik lounging on her bed.
"Dear Lord! Do you mind not giving me a heart attack every time I enter my room? Here's your clothes and I was wondering if you gave Madame Giry a little hint that I can sing." she said, setting the brown paper bag down by her vanity.
"You might as well get used to it because I am going to be here delivering letters and lists to you for quite a while. Now, as for telling Madame Giry about you, yes I wrote her a letter about you and how well you sing. Now, are you ready for your first voice and dance lesson?" Ana glared at him but slowly nodded.
Erik opened the door and gestured for her to exit first.
"No! You are doing the waltz wrong. It's a three beat count. One, two three, one, two, three. Again, try it again." Erik told her
Ana sighed and stuck her arms up around her invisible dancing partner. She counted out loud with Erik tapping the beat.
"No! You are as dumb as a rock when it comes to social dancing." He grumbled.
"Oh I am so sorry that in America, we don't do the waltz. And my hands are freezing, it's too cold in here." she said, a puff of breath proving her point.
Erik growled and stepped into her invisible partner's spot. He grabbed her arms and put them around him. "Follow my lead and don't step on my feet. As for the room, this is the only place that noone except for Madame Giry, knows about." He tapped his foot to a beat and then swept her up into a fast waltz. Ana gasped at the feeling of being led around by such a despicable man whom she hated and disgusted. She was also surprised about how gentle his touch was. The way he lightly gripped her waist, leading her around. And she followed as though she knew exactly what to do.
The room, in which the two were in, was a room that was hidden from view. She would have never found it and Erik said that they would be meeting here for her voice lessons. The room was also only lit by two candelabra's that stood in opposite corners, casting shadows across the room. It must have been soundproof for no one came running to find where the sound was coming from. She had finished her singing less than twenty minutes ago and told Erik that she wanted to learn some of the native dances. Erik had agreed but only after she begged him for a good two minutes.
He suddenly stopped and pushed her away from him. She seemed confused and looked at him. He seemed to be breathing heavily as though he had run a race.
"Are you okay?" she questioned him.
"Yes, now you must go. I, I need to go work on some stuff. And I believe Meg will be looking for you. Remember, next week we shall meet here and tell anyone about meeting me and I shall spill your secret." Ana nodded and walked out of the cold room. She turned around before she left, still in the doorway, looking to see if Erik was there. But he had disappeared as though he was made out of thin air. As soon as she stepped back into the hallway, she ran into Meg.
"There you are! Where were you, I knocked on your door twice. But the only thing I found was this letter for you. Do you know who it's from?" Meg handed the letter to Ana. All that was on it was her name and a small drawing in the corner of a mask. "Yes, just something from my Uncle, probably wanting me to get something for him. If you want to do something, like catch dinner at a small café I saw while in town earlier, we can and I can pick up these things for my Uncle. Oh! And I ran into Christine, she say's hi. Now, how about some dinner?" Meg smiled at the mention of Christine.
"Sure, and while at dinner, you can tell me all about meeting Christine." The two moved towards the back entrance. The shadow that was standing above them growled softly then swept away.
Three hours, another bag of music stuff for Erik, and a full stomach later Ana collapsed on her bed. She placed the stuff by the mirror and slipped behind the screen. Quickly, she changed into her long shift and crawled into the bed. She fell asleep quickly for the day tomorrow would be a long day. The mirror slide open quietly and the figure bent down and picked up the bag. He stared at the sleeping figure then shook his head. Getting ready to leave, he took one last look at her and saw her shiver. Taking his cloak off he quietly crossed the threshold and laid it across her sleeping form. Then, with quick strides he went back into the mirror and disappeared into the darkness. Note:Whee! New chapter that I just finished tonight! I'm soon going to delve into Ana's deep dark mysterious past, the pain she feels on her wrists, arms and stomach, are clues to what will happen later! Thank you and keep the reviews coming!
Another chapter for all my phans...lol...now do y'all see the little review button down there on the left hand corner, click it and please, please, please review! Thanks!
